Fatty food city a healthy place for vegans to eat

IT is notorious for having Europe’s worst health problems and lowest life expectancy, fuelled by a diet rich in salt and fat.

The cause of Glasgow’s poor health has been the subject of several academic studies

But Glasgow has been named as the most vegan-friendly city in the UK by animal rights pressure group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

The charity says that Scotland’s biggest city is at the “cutting edge” of catering for vegans.

It points to more than 20 restaurants and cafes across the city that cater for those who subscribe to the vegan lifestyle, which requires followers to give up all meat and animal products. The charity says that establishments such as The 78 Cafe Bar, The 13th Note and The Bungo all offer vegans meat-free versions of haggis.

The cause of the city’s poor health has been the subject of several academic studies.

Hypotheses have included vitamin D deficiency caused by a lack of sunlight, cold winters, high levels of stress, and a “culture of alienation”.

Glaswegians should be proud that their hometown is on the cutting edge of healthy cuisine that is earth and animal-friendly

PETA’s Yvonne Taylor

More recent studies found that Glasgow residents were lower consumers of healthier food such as high fibre bread and green vegetables, and starchy foods, such as potatoes, pasta and rice than similar cities in the UK.

PETA’s Yvonne Taylor said: “Glaswegians should be proud that their hometown is on the cutting edge of healthy cuisine that is earth and animal-friendly.

“Eating the flesh, milk and eggs of animals is a tradition that all of us, including animals, can live without.”

Figures released in 2010 found that men living in deprived areas in the North of Glasgow could expect to live to 69.

But just across the city boundary, in East Dunbartonshire, life expectancy remains the highest in Scotland, with the average male living to 78.

Earlier this week, PETA was criticised for using singer Samia Najimy Finnerty,16, as the poster girl for its sexually suggestive campaign boasting the slogan: “Vegans go all the way.”